Several years ago, New York State enacted a mandatory recycling law stipulating that a retailer of certain beverages (such as soda and beer) is required to charge the buyer a minimum deposit on each container. This deposit is then refundable to the consumer upon the return of the empty container to the vendor, thus encouraging the public to recycle. The vendors are required by law to store and keep an inventory of these empty containers. The retailers are then for each container redeemed by the distributors of each brand.
Understandably, the law became unpopular with both beverage distributors and retail establishments alike, due to the problems associated with the added burdens of keeping inventories of the empty containers and accounting for the refunds of the redeemed containers. Each container requires accounting according to its brand name, size and type of material (i.e., glass, plastic or aluminum).
Various computerized methods were invented to provide beverage retailers and distributors with easier ways of sorting, storing and accounting for the empties. Two such methods are illustrated in U.S. Pat. Nos. 4,667,291 (issued to Weitzman et al on May 19, 1987); and 4,829,428 (issued to Weitzman et al on May 9, 1989).
Despite the improved methods described in the aforesaid patents, however, the task of accounting for the tens and hundreds of thousands of empty containers of various brands, sizes and types was still daunting, being both inconvenient and troublesome for retailers and distributors.
The major problem experienced by the retailers is is having to account for each redeemed can or bottle by its brand name, in order that each distributor be charged for his or her share of the redemption costs. When retailers carry many different brands, this task becomes both burdensome and complicated. Since each distributor of a particular brand is required to reimburse the retailer, the multiple accountings can become almost unmanageable. This, therefore, discourages all but the largest establishments from carrying a large selection of brands. Clearly, this limits any incentive to carry those products having limited sales appeal.
The second greatest problem encountered after passage of the mandatory recycling law is the enormous amounts of time required to implement and operate the ramifications of such a system.
Still another problem to be faced is the need for the trained personnel who are required to program and operate the computers needed to maintain this aspect of the recycling law.
The present invention reflects the discovery that the entire procedure of sorting, storing and accounting for the empty containers can be greatly streamlined and made less burdensome by applying sampling techniques using statistical methodologies.
The sampling technique of this invention can actually provide a more accurate determination of the container population than the former procedure of accounting for each and every empty. One reason that the old method is less accurate than that of the inventive method is undoubtedly due to the higher, naturally occurring inaccuracies resulting from the enormous numbers and the great variety of empties requiring processing.
The current inventive method provides a dramatic reduction in the amount of data needed to be entered, stored and processed by computer. The current procedure is more economical and less burdensome in many ways for the retailers.
The sampling technique of the invention is based upon a statistical curve of the overall population of empties according to commodity. The method provides data having an accuracy to within a small, acceptable percentage of error. No longer will the retailers have to sort, scan or key-enter containers by brand, size and type. The requirement for many separate storage areas or bins will be eliminated and will, in and of itself, be a great cost savings, eradicating the unwieldy nature of the accounting process. Therefore, the invention will provide a more convenient and economical method of sorting and accounting.
The sorting and sampling of representative, random batches in accordance with the current invention requires a transitional storage and accounting for the batch samples. One such accounting technique used herein is based on FIFO, i.e., first in is first out. The retail establishment counts and sorts containers only by commodity or type, i.e., aluminum cans and containers of plastic or glass. Glass containers may be further sorted according to color. Distributors are linked to each brand of container by appropriate processing software. The billing of each distributor for redemption is based on a given brand's percentage of the container count in the batch. This brand percentage is multiplied by the total or gross container count to assess the distributor's liability.
The present inventive method also allows for the introduction, inclusion or integration of reverse vending counts, as well as other accounting data obtained from other redemption systems. Such aforementioned data can be added to the batch sample data of this invention in order to provide a comprehensive accounting process.